Social cognitive theory and physical activity: Mechanisms of behavior change, critique, and legacy

By M. Beauchamp, Kaitlin L. Crawford, B. Jackson. Psychology of Sport And Exercise, 2019

266 citations recorded by the source corpus.

Objectives: With a view to understanding and explaining human behavior, Bandura developed social cognitive theory (SCT; 1986, 2001). This theory articulates the causal mechanisms through which efficacy beliefs, outcome expectations, sociostructural factors, and goals influence behavior. The purpose of this review is to critically appraise the current state of knowledge in the physical activity domain, as it relates to the core tenets of Bandura's SCT, and in particular those aspects of the theory that have received less attention. Method: A state‐of‐the‐art review. Results and conclusions: The review highlights five major critiques and contentions related to SCT, and also provides an overview of the legacy of this framework within the physical activity domain. Implications for theory refinement, future research, and knowledge mobilization are discussed. HighlightsSocial Cognitive Theory (SCT) represents a parsimonious model to understand physical activity.Most research that has used SCT has focused on the self‐efficacy construct.Some important critiques of SCT have emerged in recent years. These are discussed.SCT has left a considerable legacy on the field of sport and exercise psychology.

Subfields: Applied Psychology, Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health, Social Psychology

View Paper: https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/9214d3589b5be539f012ec58d07b766840513685